"The Maine League is excited for this transition," Alfond writes in an email to the Phoenix. "A new state director will bring in a new vision, energy and relationships to our work. It will be almost five years when I step down, at the end of the 2008 election, and it is time for a new leader."

As for what Alfond'll get up to, it's still up in the air. "Things will get a lot clearer during the '08 year," he says. But one thing's for certain -- he's not leaving the world of politics and organizing. "I've got the bug," he says.